Security tensions meet economic statecraft and influence campaigns

This cluster tracks how China wields military, economic, and informational tools to shape its strategic environment amid rising friction with the US and its allies. In Asia, Beijing is reacting to US-Japan-Philippines drills, patrolling the South China Sea, watching US military movements, weighing in on potential support for Iran, and escalating trade and regulatory pressure on Japan as political ties sour. At the same time, China is building long-term influence through trade policy in Africa, deepening alignment with Russia in Central Asia, and embedding itself in Latin America, all within an emerging Sino-centric multilateral order. Reports of targeted influence operations against elections and public opinion in Japan, South Korea, and beyond highlight that China’s foreign policy now blends hard security moves with subtler efforts to reshape narratives and institutions globally.